Harry Nettleton’s 1907 RaCycle Pace Maker

1907 RaCycle

There are a lot of names here so lets see… This is the Pace Maker model RaCycle, and RaCycles were made by the Miami Cycle and Manufacturing company of Middleton, Ohio.

Bikes like this one followed high-wheelers onto the cobbled streets of early 1900’s America. With newly invented roller chain and pneumatic tires, this would have been a luxuriously smooth ride compared to a Penny-Farthing.

One of the selling points of the Pace Maker was the massive front chainring (equivalent to a modern 84-tooth ring) that was meant to attract attention and suggest higher speed (but the big ring was actually offset by a big back cog that ended up producing a comfortable gear ratio).

The new air-filled tires were mounted (using shellac as glue) to wooden rims (maple, I think).

Head badge

Adjustable handlebar

Oversized drivetrain

Fork pegs

42 skip-tooth chainring

A RaSaddle?

The handlebars on the Pace Maker are really cool. They pivot at the stem, and can be adjusted in width and height, depending on a rider’s desire.

Foot pegs on the front fork allowed the rider to enjoy speeding downhill on his fixed-gear bike. Sure, without your feet on the pedals to control the speed there would be no brakes, but brakes are overrated.

Racycle advertisement

Check out the old ad that we found for RaCycle bikes. The copy in old advertising and press releases like this one was so earnest. According to the manufacturer, a 1904 Worlds Fair jury “consisting of the ablest consulting and manufacturing engineers in Europe and America, were unanimous in their decision that the Racycle was the most perfectly constructed, easiest running bicycle in the world.”

However they were judged, early “safety” bicycles like this one really brought inexpensive personal transportation to the masses. They connected people with jobs and schools, connected rural areas of the country with cities, connected extended families (and liberated family members from one another).

This bike was originally owned by Harry Nettleton of Red Wing, Minnesota. Harry raised the original $16.50 purchase price by collecting clam shells from the Minnesota river and selling them to a local button factory.

By the way, if you take a look at the Iver Johnson Truss-bridge bike from the same era, you’ll note that the RaCycle was about a third of the price of the Iver Johnson.

1986 Hutch Pro Racer

1986 Hutch Pro Racer

1986 Hutch Pro Racer

1986 Hutch Pro Racer

Who says that boys can’t ride pink bikes?

True, our friend Jay Elhardt built this bike for his wife to ride, but it isn’t necessarily a girls bike.

During BMX’s prime time, Hutch factory racer Mike Miranda and freestyler Woody Itson both rode pink machines. Mike’s visage leapt off the covers of BMX Plus leading the field on his pink Hutch.

Jay restored this totally tubular time machine with some of the coolest components. Tioga tires, Oakley grips, three-piece cranks, a laid back post and a Dia-Compe Nippon rear brake.

Mike Miranda and his pink Hutch Hollywood

Mike Miranda and his pink Hutch Hollywood

White ACS Z-rims

White ACS Z-rims

The wheels roll around on nylon ACS Z-Rims. Nylon rims, like the aluminum rims that they were replacing, were plenty strong. Of course, like any “alternative” product used in bike construction, Z-rims had their skeptics and were the subject of a few myths. The skeptics were sure that the plastic rims would break easily (ignoring their own dented rims) as compared to metal.

JT Racing plate

JT Racing plate

DK Stem

Laid-back post

Of the myths, my favorite was always told by a defensive Z-rim rider. They would swear quite earnestly that their wheels could be trued by simply sticking them in the freezer. Now, as a BMX rider who grew up in frosty Minnesota, Jay would be the first person to tell you that simply freezing these wheels will do nothing to straighten out a warped rim. Likewise, after 30 years in existence, Z-rim skeptics can quit wondering about long-term durability.

By paul|2020-04-25T20:21:02+00:00April 24th, 2020|Museum Bikes 1986 to 2000|Comments Off